Knowsley local plan hearings reconvened

Dates have been set for the next stage of the Knowsley local plan core strategy examination, with hearings scheduled for Tuesday 2 June and Wednesday 3 June set to look at the council's revised housing supply.

The hearings will take place at The Venue in Huyton. If necessary, the sessions could continue on Thursday 4 June.

The local plan core strategy will guide development in Knowsley up to 2028. The council submitted its strategy to the government in November 2013, with interim findings from a planning inspector in January 2014 outlining a lack of sites to meet the five year housing supply need, alongside questions over the deliverability of employment sites and the protection of some green spaces.

By June 2014, the council had made main modifications to its plan, including the release of nine of its green belt reserve sites for use as strategic urban extensions. The inspector's second interim findings found that the revised version of the plan showed a sound approach to the delivery of housing in the area, and the plan was released for public consultation in October 2014.

Following the modifications, the plan received a greater public response than in the earlier phases, including objections to the release of some of the green belt sites. The examination will look at these responses, as well as whether recent household projection figures release in February will affect the objectively assessed housing need for the area.

Knowsley Council's housing target is 8,100 homes over the plan period.

Full details of the hearings will be sent to everyone who has submitted a formal comment on the local plan and will be included in the examination news section at www.knowsley.gov.uk/localplan.